Brownie Points For Winter Proofing Your Elderly Parents Home

The crisp golden leaves, the long snuggly nights, the chance to binge-watch Netflix, running through our neighbourhood kicking the fallen leaves, wearing extra layers as we play board games with the family – Everyone we know absolutely loves fall, everyone except one that is: our elderly parents. For them, this isn’t exactly the most dreamy time of year. For them, fall is all about preparing their home for the cold winter months. And that is where you can help them out.

Most of the time it is just little improvements that make the biggest impact – inexpensive little hacks. However, it could be that you need to help your dear old mom and dad apply for a loan through homeequitylineof.credit knowing that a much bigger investment is needed in order to make their home totally winterproof; protecting their investment from whatever Game Of Thrones type of chaos is heading their way.

Below we have pulled together a list of the must-make winter preparations to your parents home. If nothing else, you’ll certainly get more Brownie points that your other siblings.

Make Sure Their Heating Works

Nothing is as important as making sure the heating system in your parent’s home is working like new, which is why you need to call out a technician and have them complete a service. Whether it is a furnace or heat pump that needs inspecting doesn’t matter, so long as it is working as efficiently as possible and not leaking carbon monoxide, your duties will be done on this front.

Leaky Roof Syndrome Needs Fixing

Chances are, your parents won’t be able to climb onto the roof themselves – or even inspect it properly through a pair of binoculars – which is why you need to pop round and get the ladder out yourself. What you are looking for is broken, cracked, missing or loose shingles. If you see any signs of this kind of thing, a roof repair company will be worth their weight in gold. A problem prevented is a lot cheaper than trying to fix a problem. If your parents have a flat roof then clean it down and re-apply the asphalt.

A Steady Hand For Caulking

That draft running through your parents home is a real problem, which is why you need to buy them some caulk and then go onto Youtube to learn just how to do a good job on this front. The main culprits are windows and doors. Of course, which caulk you use will depend on whether you are caulking the exterior or interior. If it is the former, then a silicone based caulk will be your best bet. Wow, we just said the word caulk a lot.

Life In The Gutter

Another job that your elderly parents are unlikely to undertake is the bi-annual cleaning of the gutters that every home needs doing. This is because clogged up gutters can lead to serious water damage – the kind that starts slowly and then causes chaos to ensue. We’re talking damaged roof and walls, which could then see you have to apply for an even bigger loan to manage the repair job.